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Has anyone ever broached the subject of this Forum's members meeting anywhere? If some Member's sense of humour is anything to go by, it would work really well....

That didn't take long. Just met my first EU citizen following our exit. She said goodnight.

Or the newspaper headline, after the man broke out of the asylum, raped some launderette workers and escaped, that read: "Nut screws washers and bolts"....

Recently I came across a penny a Freeman 67, which is a rare type (6+H) that looked like it had been struck to a specimen standard. I could not find any reference of this type struck to either proof or specimen standard. Has anyone else come across one they would have thought was too good for a circulation strike?

I don't think the F74 is a proof, nor was ever intended to be. Rather it is an intentional specimen, as opposed to an early strike from new polished dies. The following description accompanied the Copthorne example:- Anyway, here it is. It is an exceptionally good strike, especially to the obverse. But lacks any indication whatever of it being a proof.

I have always been a little sceptical about some of the so-called "proofs" and/or "specimens" of the 1874 series. LCA have sold several F74 proof pennies (I have bought one) and although they are sharply struck with good surfaces, I have never been totally convinced that they were struck as proofs. Interestingly, they offered in September 2012 a "unique" 1874 (no H) 6+G penny for sale, ex-Freeman who described it as proof. The accompanying description was interesting as it exemplified the debates around proof/nonproof pennies of that era. The coin was unsold and I don't recall why I didn't buy it - I guess I wasn't convinced.

I'm afraid this is a typical example of a scan obliterating all that's good about a coin's tone. However, it's the best I could do back then, but it doesn't show the penny's glossy dark blue/green patina.

No, in fact the only specimens/possible proofs known of in the 1874 series, are the Heaton Mint ones (F74). I actually successfully bid for the Copthorne example, in 2016. Your F67 definitely does have the typical red/blue toning characteristics of a specimen, as well as that thick rim, especially to the obverse, which my F74 has as well.